Verb of the Day – رَأَى (Raʼá)
In this series, we will learn about the meanings of various verbs in the Arabic language and the ways of their conjugation with pronouns in different verb tenses.
Today, we will begin with the verb “رَأَى” (Raʼá), which translates to “saw”
Main Meaning
1. To see with your eye
The verb means to see with the naked eye. For instance,
رَأَى الأَبُ اِبنَهُ يَلعَبُ
(Raʼá alʼabu ibnahu yalʻabu)
This means: “The father saw his son playing,” or
رَأَى النَّجمَ في السَّماءِ
(Raʼá alnaajma fī alssamāʼi)
This means: “He saw the star in the sky.”
2. To give an opinion
It also denotes an individual’s perspective on a specific statement or opinion. For example,
رَأَى أَبي أَنّ هَذا الرَّأيَ خاطِئٌ
(Raʼá aby ann hadhā alraaʼya khāṭiʼun)
This means: My father saw (thought) that this opinion was wrong.
رَأَى الأَبُ أَنّ التِلفازَ كَبيرٌ وَرَأَتِ الأُمُّ أَنّه مُناسِبٌ.
(Raʼá alʼabu ann altilfāza kabyrun waraʼati alʼummu annh munāsibun)
The father saw (thought) that the television was large, and the mother saw (thought) that it was suitable.
Present and Past Conjugations
The conjugation of this verb with pronouns in the past and present tenses is as follows:
1. أَنا رَأَيتُ / أَنا أَرى
/Anā raʼaytu – anā ará/ (I saw / I see)
2. نَحنُ رَأَينا / نَحنُ نَرى
/Naḥnu raʼaynā – naḥnu nará/ (We saw / We see)
3. هُوَ رَأَى / هُوَ يَرى
/Huwa raʼá – huwa yará/ (He saw/ He sees)
4. هُم رَأَوا/ هُم يَرونَ
/Hum raʼaw – hum yarwna/ (They saw/ They see (Masculine plural))
5. هيَ رَأت / هيَ تَرى
/Hya raʼt – hya tará/ (She saw/ She sees)
6. هُنّ رَأَينَ/ هُنّ يَرونَ
/Hunn raʼayna – hunn yarwna/ (They saw/ They see (Feminine plural))
7. أنتَ رأَيتَ / أنتَ تَرى
/Anta rʼayta – anta tará/ (You saw/ You see (Masculine singular))
8. أَنتُم رَأَيتُم/ أَنتُم تَرونَ
/Antum raʼaytum – antum tarwna/ (You saw/ You see (masculine plural))
9. أنتِ رأيتِ / أنتِ ترينَ
/Anti rʼyti – anti tryna/ (You saw/ You see (feminine singular))
10. أَنتُنَّ رَأَيتُنَّ / أَنتُنّ تَرونَ
/Antunna raʼaytunna – antunn tarwna/ (You saw / You see (feminine plural))
11. أَنتُما رأيتُما/ أنتُما تريانِ
/Antumā rʼytumā – antumā tryāni/ (You saw/ You see)
12. هُما رأيا / هما يريان
/Humā rʼyā – humā yryān/ (They saw / They see)
Verb in the Quran
Here is an example of the usage of the verb “رَأَى “(Raʼá) “saw”:
قول الله تعالى (فَلمّا جَنّ عَليهِ اللَّيلُ رَأَى كَوكَبًا)
/falmmā jann ʻalyhi alllaylu raʼá kawkaban/
Allah the Almighty said, “So when the night covered him [with darkness], he saw a star.”
Verb in the Hadith
In the Holy Hadith, we see the verb in this verse: وفي الحديث الشريف: (مَن رَأَى مِنكُم مُنكَرًا فَليُغَيّرهُ بِيَدِه ..)
/man raʼá minkum munkaran falyughayyrhu biyadih/
This Hadith means: (Whoever amongst you sees an evil, he must change it with his hand.)
Verb in Poetry
The verb رأى is also used in the following line of poetry:
رَأَيتُ الدّهر مُختَلِفًا يَدورُ فَلا حُزنٌ يَدومُ وَلا سُرورُ
/Raʼaytu alddhrr mukhtalifan yadwru falā ḥuznun yadwmu walā surwru/
In English, it means, “I saw the eternity turn differently, so neither sorrow nor pleasure would last forever.”
More Examples
1. أَنا أَرى الشَّمسَ مُشرِقّةً
/Anā ará alshaamsa mushriqtan/ (I see the sun shining.)
2. أَنتَ تَرى أَنّ الطّقسَ مُناسِبٌ لِلتَّخييمِ
/Anta tará ann alṭṭqsa munāsibun liltaakhyymi/ (You see that the weather is suitable for camping.)
3. هِيَ رَأَت المُعَلِّمةَ قادمةً
/Hiya raʼat almuʻallimta qādimtan/ (She saw the teacher coming.)
4. رَأَينا النُّجومَ تُزَيِّنُ السَّماء
/Raʼaynā alnnujwma tuzayyinu alsaamāʼ/ (We saw the stars adorning the sky.)
5. هَل رَأَيتُم نَشرةَ الأَخبارِ البارِحةَ؟
/Hal raʼaytum nashrta alʼakhbāri albāriḥta?/ (Did you see the news yesterday?)
6. هل تَرونَ أنَّ اللِّباسَ مُناسِبٌ؟
/Hal tarwna anaa alllibāsa munāsibun?/ (Do you see the dress as appropriate?)
Word Derivations
Furthermore, there are words derived from the same root of this verb, such as:
1. رُؤْيَةٌ /Rāʼī/ (viewer)
2. مَرْئِي /marʼī/ (visual)
3. رَائِي /ruʼyatun/ (vision)
Similar Verbs
Lastly, there is another Arabic verb that carries the same meaning as the verb “saw,” which is looking and watching with the naked eye, it is the verb “watch.”
Examples
رَأَيتُ المُعَلِّمَ يَقُودُ السَّيَّارةَ /Raʼaytu almuʻallima yaqūdu alssayyārta/
(I saw the teacher driving the car)
or
شاهَدتُ المُعَلِّمَ يَقُودُ السَّيَّارةَ /Shāhadtu almuʻallima yaqūdu alssayyārta/
(I watched the teacher driving the car)
رَأَينا في التِّلفازِ بَرنامَجًا مُفيدًا /Raʼaynā fī alttilfāzi barnāmajan mufydan/
(We saw a useful program on TV)
or
شاهَدنا في التِّلفازِ بَرنامَجًا مُفيدًا /Shāhadnā fī alttilfāzi barnāmajan mufydan/
(We watched a useful program on TV)
Conclusion
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Now it is your turn to write sentences in the comments using the verb “See”.
Do you have any suggestions for new verbs to discuss?
